"47 Permits From 19 Government Agencies"
There's been a significant push from the construction sector to find a long-term solution for highway and infrastructure spending. While the tax implications and political issues are significant, so are the job opportunities and the need for immediate and ongoing infrastructure repair. most sources say.
A couple of industry advocates recently wrote some interesting articles on the topic. In an article titles "Why Our Crumbling Infrastructure Will Never Get Fixed: It's Held Up by Red Tape", author Jeff Yoders noted that replenishing the Federal Highway Trust Fund is "only one part of the problem of why our crumbling infrastructure isn’t being replaced. Much of it is simply held up in red tape."
Yoders quotes Philip K. Howard of Common Good as saying "Red tape is so dense that even obvious fix-it projects require years of review. Raising the roadway of the New Jersey-to-New York Bayonne Bridge, for example, was a project with almost no environmental impact, because it used the bridge’s existing foundations and right of way. But it still required 47 permits from 19 government agencies, and a 5,000-page environmental assessment.” Click here for Yoder's article,in MetalMiner.
In a Milwaukee Journal Sentinal opinion piece, Dennis Slater suggests Congressman Paul Ryan can help find a fix. Slater is president of Associated Equipment Manufacturers, representing many companies that produce construction, mining and ag equipment. Ryan, of course, is a former candidate for Vice President on the Romney ticket and now chairs the House Ways and Means committee. He is "in the position to decide whether, in the next few weeks, Congress will step up and tackle one of the biggest long-term fiscal challenges facing our nation, fixing the Highway Trust Fund," Slater wrote.
He says the gas tax user fee "hasn't been adjusted since 1993 and, as a result, has lost its buying power due to both inflation and increased fuel efficiency. Because of this misalignment, the money that states need just to keep up with maintenance and repair is underfunded by about $15 billion per year. That's a tab that adds up quickly over time . . . Ryan is in the unique position of being in charge of finding the money we need to make sure we don't face a partial government shutdown of highway projects right at the height of the construction season this summer."
AEM advocates raising gas taxes, though Ryan currently disagrees. Slater notes that "Ryan, Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have all previously said they recognize the need for a long-term highway bill. Now is when the proverbial rubber hits the road. Ryan has begun to float a short-term extension to buy himself more time to craft comprehensive tax reform legislation — a laudable goal — which he says would account for highway investments. But the safety of America's roads and bridges shouldn't depend on the fate of tax reform, which faces an arduous path forward on Capitol Hill."
It's an issue that won't go away soon and has no easy answer. As Slater emphasized, another short-term bill will hurt jobs and the economy.
Mike Martin
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